Maine State Police chased a man driving erratically at high speed on Interstate 95 from Bangor to Waterville on Friday afternoon before causing a crash that stopped him.
At about 2:06 p.m. state police got a report of a Toyota pickup truck speeding erratically on the southbound side of the divided interstate near mile marker 190 in Orono, Maine Department of Public Safety spokesperson Shannon Moss said.
Troopers tried to stop the truck near mile marker 182 in Bangor, but the driver refused to pull over, Moss said, adding that the truck was traveling erratically in both lanes of traffic, “posing significant danger to other motorists.”
The chase ended more than 50 miles later, near mile marker 130, when the driver of the truck hit spike mats laid down by police and crashed into a tree off Main Street in Waterville.
Police took the driver, 39-year-old Nathaniel Porter, of Crystal, into custody and brought him to Thayer Hospital for an evaluation. He faces multiple charges, including criminal speed, eluding a law enforcement officer, operating under the influence, and failure to submit to arrest.
Main Street in Waterville was briefly closed while emergency crews and police secured the scene, Moss said.